Mental Health Clinician | Children, Parents & Families | Experienced

Food Play Grow by Family Dietetics
Part-time or Full-time | Hastings

About the Role

Food Play Grow is looking for an experienced Mental Health Clinician to join our multidisciplinary team in Hastings.

We're deliberately keeping this position broad.

You might be a Psychologist, Counsellor, Family Therapist, Play Therapist, Art Therapist or another appropriately qualified mental health professional whose experience and professional approach align with the children, adults and families we support.

Rather than recruiting to a narrowly defined caseload, we're looking for an experienced clinician who brings an area of genuine clinical interest and expertise.

For this role, we're particularly interested in clinicians who enjoy working not only with an individual child or adult, but also with the relationships, family environment and broader systems around them.

What Could Your Passion Area Be?

Your area of expertise might include:

Child and adolescent mental health

Parent and caregiver mental health

Family counselling or family therapy

Eating disorders, ARFID or body image

Anxiety, mood and emotional regulation

School refusal, school avoidance and barriers to educational participation

Neurodivergence and mental health

Attachment and relationships

Trauma-informed care

Parenting support and strengthening family capacity

Significant life transitions, grief and adjustment

Disability or chronic health conditions

Supporting young people experiencing self-harm or other higher-complexity mental health presentations, within an appropriate community-based scope of practice

Supporting families experiencing psychosocial complexity

Working alongside child protection, family services or other government and community services.

Or you may bring an area of expertise we haven't listed that complements the needs of the children and families accessing our services.

We'd like to hear about it.

Working With the Whole Family

Sometimes the person who needs support isn't only the child who was originally referred.

Parents and caregivers may be navigating their own mental health, stress, relationships or changing family circumstances while also supporting a child with developmental, feeding, disability or mental health needs.

At Food Play Grow, there is scope for the right clinician to work more broadly with parents, caregivers and families, where this sits within their professional expertise and scope of practice.

We are interested in clinicians who recognise that meaningful change for a child can sometimes involve supporting the people and relationships around them.

Working Across Systems

Some of the children and families accessing our services have complex needs and are supported by multiple services.

Depending on your professional background and experience, your role may involve collaboration with:

Child and family services

DFFH and other government departments

Schools and education services

NDIS providers and support teams

GPs, paediatricians and other health professionals

Community and family support organisations.

Experience working within these systems is highly regarded.

We're interested in clinicians who can maintain a strong therapeutic focus while also communicating professionally and confidently with the broader network around a child or family.

About Food Play Grow

Food Play Grow is part of the Family Dietetics and Family Allied Health network, bringing together clinicians committed to practical, evidence-informed and person- and family-centred care.

Our work has strong foundations in paediatrics, feeding, nutrition and disability, with our broader allied health services continuing to grow in response to the needs of the communities we support.

Our clients don't always fit neatly within one discipline or one diagnosis.

That's why we value clinicians who bring their own depth of expertise while also enjoying genuine multidisciplinary practice.

Who We're Looking For

This is an experienced clinician position.

We're looking for someone who:

Has established clinical skills within their profession

Brings a defined area of professional interest or expertise

Is confident working with children, adults and/or families

Is comfortable working with complexity

Can collaborate effectively with external services and professionals

Values evidence-informed, trauma-informed and person-centred care

Understands their professional scope and boundaries

Brings sound clinical judgement and professional maturity

Enjoys multidisciplinary collaboration

Wants to continue developing genuine expertise in their chosen area.

Your qualifications, registration and professional membership requirements will depend on your discipline.

Relevant Working with Children, Police Screens and NDIS Worker Screening requirements will apply to the position.

Why Food Play Grow?

We're interested in clinicians who want to build something around what they do well.

You'll have the opportunity to bring your own professional expertise while working alongside clinicians from other disciplines and supporting children and families whose needs often extend beyond a single area of care.

We offer:

Full-time or part-time employment

A dedicated CPD budget

Professional supervision and development

Multidisciplinary collaboration

Opportunities to further develop your area of clinical expertise

Autonomy appropriate to an experienced clinician

Varied clinical and collaborative work

The opportunity to contribute to the continued development of our allied health services.

We take private practice seriously as a clinical career and value clinicians who see the professional opportunity in providing excellent, complex and meaningful care within the community.

Your Location

Food Play Grow
37–41 Victoria Street
Hastings VIC

Interested?

We're interested in more than your job title.

Tell us what you're good at, what you're passionate about and where you'd like to take your clinical practice next.

You may be passionate about working therapeutically with children. You might particularly enjoy working with parents and families. You may bring experience in family counselling, mental health, disability, eating disorders or complex psychosocial care.

Or your particular area of expertise may be something we haven't listed.

If your experience aligns with the children and families we support, we'd like to hear what you could bring to Food Play Grow.

Apply through SEEK with your CV and a cover letter telling us about your professional background, your area of clinical interest or expertise, and what you're looking for in your next role.